|
December 2010
|
Missionary Family Update
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Letter from Pastor Arden and Susan in Zambia
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dear Pastor Nancy
|
Greetings!
|
|
|
Bream, beans, greens & rice makes a great African
dish.
|
Welcome to Zambia.
If you came to see us just now, we'd take you out for a
dinner considered very tasty, like this one, for only $3.
The annual rains have begun here in Zambia. The air is
clear of dust, and one can see a long distance. The bush is thick green,
our vehicles are covered in mud, and the blue clouds are a drama in
motion. It's also the time of year I get hit up more often by people
asking to borrow money for fertilizer for farming
season. The police hassle me less at road blocks since
they don't like to stand in the rain, the sweet green mangoes are cheap
and there are baby lizards scampering across our walls.
|
|
four minus
one makes three
|
|
|
|
Chloe at graduation
|
You'd see that... our oldest daughter Chloe graduated from
the American Int'l High School of Lusaka in June and began studies at
UC-Irvine in September. We certainly miss Chloe, even
though she'd been itching to start the next chapter of her life for
quite some time.
Our daughter Alea, 9, is thriving in 3rd grade, with her
teacher Mrs Birner. Mrs Birner has been in Zambia a very long time,
and is the wife of the missionary pastor here from the Lutheran
Church-Wisconsin Synod.
Now that's a coincidence! Alea has begun after school swim
team practices at school, in addition to her pony riding
activities. Alea is also devouring Chloe's historic Archie
comics, since her reading level has risen.
|
|
|
Alea and Elephants on the Chobe River
|
Personally, 2010 has been harder for me and for Susan than
other years. My mother died in March, and Susan's brother died
in May. Our fathers have increasing health limitations.
We've also been more sensitive to the usual challenges here, whether it's
cultural misunderstanding, unrealized expectations, the grinding poverty
or social dysfunction. Thankfully, God also surprises us with
encouragement and satisfaction. Often this comes through Zambians, who
accept us, or inspire us, or simply show us how to enjoy the free gift of
company.
|
|
Christian
Leadership Development
|
|
|
|
|
Pastor Arden with Mr Likando, a teacher
and congregational leader.
|
My core missionary focus continues in growing skills and
leaders for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zambia (ELC-Zambia), now
with 3000 members worshipping every Sunday morning across 35
congregations, towards the goal of one day becoming a
self-reliant body. There are no short cuts towards becoming
self-supporting. This entails identifying and building up those
persons with potential. I continue hosting short courses in
ministry for our twenty lay parish workers, and find outside courses for
strengthening ten other congregational leaders in various core ministry
competencies. For example, in 2011 I'll bring five of our worship
music leaders across Zambia to a week-long music school I'm now planning
with other local musicians.
In order to continue to grow, our 13 Zambian pastors must
start even more congregations. To encourage this, we've actually
found a new solar powered projector & sound system (!), a great tool
for evangelism and training, since only three of our congregations have
electricity.
|
|
|
Forming & baking bricks for new church
construction at Mulendema congregation.
|
In 2010, ground was purchased for building a national
church center. This center shall include basic offices, workshop
space, senior pastor housing, and a multi-purpose hall. Given the
scope and significant cost, the church leaders are proceeding
carefully. I will share site plans with you in a few months.
I am proud of the progress this national church has made in
the four years I have been with them. They are more self-reliant,
better managed, and the new Women's League has injected a strong
spirituality back into the heart of the whole church. (Women's Leagues
are powerful engines in African churches)
|
|
|
Pastor Dorreen tying the scarf on the 100th
inductee into the women's league.
|
|
|
Preschool for Vulnerable Children almost two years old
|
|
|
|
|
Lunch at the Hope for the Heart Preschool
|
Adult illness and deaths from AIDS has compromised many families' abilities to
raise their children well. The church's full-day preschool for 20
vulnerable children is almost two years old now. (The letters
HFHORC on the back of the preschool sweaters below stands for Hope
for the Heart Outreach Centre.) Their teacher, Mrs Moyo, shown, is
completing her certificate in childhood development next week, thanks to
your support.
|
|
|
Songs and movement with preschool teacher Mrs
Moyo.
|
|
|
New Malaria
Program
|
|
Too many Africans suffer from malaria and millions still
die. I'm supporting the rollout of the Lutheran Malaria Campaign.
We have appointed a Malaria Officer, Abel Mukungwe, and undertaken two
workshops for training 60 of our members as malaria community health
educators, learning about transmission, rapid treatment, protecting
vulnerable groups, net distribution, and environmental mitigation. This
multi-year initiative is receiving a very positive response from the
Zambian government.
|
|
|
Teaching our church volunteers about malaria
transmission,
prevention, vulnerable groups, and rapid testing.
|
|
|
Micro-Credit
program improves loan practices, tracking & reporting
|
|
|
|
Lehigh teachers examining cotton grown
by micro-credit participants
|
I held a
Zambian Lutheran Micro-Credit Leadership Gathering in August. We
were pleased to include business students and professors from Lehigh
University in Pennsylvania, stimulating our small group discussions and
providing a presentation on entrepreneurship. Together we reviewed the
management, success rate and sustainability of our micro-credit groups,
utilizing the experience gained so far to debate and determine better
practices and policies. This advances the overarching objective of this
program, now 3 years old, which is poverty reduction. Lehigh
students also wrote a custom Microsoft Access database for better
group performance monitoring. Now I aim to hire two new field workers.
|
|
|
Field worker Mr Mwanza reviewing
financial records with Lehigh
|
|
|
|
Small group interchange at workshop
|
|
|
Susan's
team grows
|
|
|
|
Susan & her staff playing team building games at her
recent staff retreat.
|
My wife Susan has had a year with changes. The
Glaser Foundation began a new partnership with UNICEF in mother-baby care
programming. Susan was promoted to Country Director, and was
delighted to be honored this year through selection as a Fellow of the
American Academy of Nursing. She still loves training, and in
particular enjoys the time she has with her pediatric counselor
workshops.
|
|
|
Susan w/ three of her big lead staff Phillip,
Richard & Chansa
|
Susan writes, "December 1 was World AIDS
Day. 75,000
children are currently living with HIV in Zambia alone. And while more are now receiving lifesaving
treatment, many more still need to be reached. Without treatment, half of
all HIV-positive children will die before their second birthdays. A
number of organizations like mine, the Elisabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS
Foundation (EGPAF), the US gov't, & the Zambian gov't, are committed
to reaching more HIV-positive pregnant women with the medicines needed to
prevent their babies from being infected in the first place. We are also
committed to reaching children living with HIV across the country,
expanding pediatric care and treatment services and providing
psychosocial support. The ultimate goal is to help these children live
long and healthy lives."
|
|
Susan talks
|
|
|
|
First Zambian President Kaunda greeting Susan (note the
African handshake)
|
If you're
interested in learning more about Susan's work, right click on the three
underlined links below, with video clips.
Here is Susan's interview at the 18th Int'l
AIDS conference in Vienna, held this past July. Scroll to the bottom.
This page highlights a local organization Glaser supports, Africa Directions,
highlighting their child counselors' work. Pastor Dan and
Laurie visited this group in 2009. Susan brought a counselor
with her onto a panel discussion on Zambian television recently.
This page describes Susan meeting the first President of
Zambia Kenneth Kaunda at
a recent tour of a district hospital.
|
|
We are bound together
|
|
|
|
|
Everyone needs good pastors.
Pastor Arden with Zambian
Pastor Phillip Haabowa
|
Did you know that your congregation has supported the church
initiatives described above? Through your Sunday offerings, or
your special covenant to my salary, or directly to the designated
projects, you empower God's work in Africa. You have sent gifts and
messages of encouragement to me and sometimes even
material support to the Zambian church.
Moreover, to examine for themselves what is happening on the
ground here, this year Bishop Marie Jerge visited Zambia with 3
pastors from the Upstate NY Synod in August. And in October Pastor Elyse
Nelson Winger and two lay mission leaders from St John's Lutheran Church
in Illinois were sent. Wow!
Please stay
involved. To continue to donate directly any church initiative
above, simply send a check to the ELCA/Global Mission Unit in
Chicago. Please make your check payable to: ELCA-GM. On
the memo line write: Global Gifts-ELC-Zambia: Church
Roofing/Building, OR Leadership Development, OR Micro-Lending.
If you must give directly to the Church in Zambia, send a US check to
ELC-Zambia, at PO Box 37701 Lusaka, Zambia, with a letter describing the
purpose of the gift.
|
|
"Only
love can leave such a mark" U2
|
|
I was recently re-introduced to a prayer from Paul, which reorients
me when I need to be. Let me share it here, for us to ponder.
Ephesians 3 16 I pray that out of his glorious
riches God may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner
being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your
hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and grounded in
love, 18 may have strength, together with all
the holy ones, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love
of Christ, 19 and to know this love that
surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
|
|
|
|
Thanks for
remembering us and our Zambian sisters & brothers when you pray.
We wish you a Merry Christmas.
|
|
From both of
us with affection,
  Pastor Arden and Susan Strasser
|
|
|
